Torontonian chills out in chic Montreal

Most days, I embrace the go-go mentality of Toronto, but every now and then I need a break. A getaway to Montreal, lingering at the sidewalk cafes, strolling the neighbourhoods and eating good cheese sounded like the perfect late-summer diversion. Montreal has a chic but easy-going attitude, so even A-types don't feel the pressure to see everything or get everywhere.

So, how to de-stress? Step one, slow down. When I arrived, the first thing I did after parking my bags in my room at the Fairmont Queen Elizabeth (900 Rene-Levesque Blvd. W.), was to walk by suite 1742. That's where John Lennon and Yoko Ono recorded 'Give Peace a Chance' during their bed-in back in 1969. I've been told the suite looks the same as any of the other suites at the hotel -- the door certainly did -- but I still tried to absorb the positive reverberations as I passed by.

Now ready to relax and watch the wheels go ‘round and ‘round, I headed to the lounge of the hotel's gold floor suite, sipped on the complimentary well-frothed cappuccino and gazed out the 19th-floor windows for a panoramic view overlooking the traffic on Rene-Lesveque.

With a home-base in the heart of the city, I have a sweet advantage. Plus, the Rogers Cup men’s tourney is underway, and the concierge tells me tennis celebrities in sweatpants are passing through the lounge -- step two, take in the scenery. Apparently, I've just missed Roger Federer pausing for coffee, so I’m going to be on the lookout at the pre-dinner h'ordeuvres and breakfast buffet.

There's always plenty to do in Montreal and eating is definitely one of them, with its trademark bagels, smoked meat and every part of the pig, thanks to Chef Martin Picard, of Au Pied de Cochon (536 Duluth St. E.). But I wasn’t in the mood for a fancy Picard poutine with foie gras; I wanted to keep it simple with a tasty plate from a neighbourhood favourite, the 24-hour La Banquise (994 Rachel St. E.). This eatery, with a faux palm tree in the middle of the dining room, dishes up 25 variations of poutine. I sampled Poutine Pizza -- why not? -- medium-cut golden fries mixed with thin strips of pepperoni, sauteed mushrooms, diced green peppers, and doused with gravy and gooey cheese curds. Pair this with a apricot beer and you have instant Quebec comfort food.

Back at the hotel, I take a short break to try a few yellow bell pepper vichyssoise shooters in the lounge, put on my heels and click daintily along Sainte-Catherine Street -- busy no matter what time of day or night -- to the Upstairs Jazz Club (1254 MacKay St., the lower level) with its vinyl-album covers on the walls and glowing fish tanks in the corners. It had a great vibe, especially for a Sunday night. You go down a few steps from the street, drink wine in small glasses and mellow.

The next morning, I’m having breakfast and another frothed coffee beverage in the lounge, my new favourite place, when a sporty trio sits nearby -- I try not to stare, but the tall, lean one is Novak Djokovic, tennis giant of Serbia, digging into cubes of fresh melon. He looks well-rested and mentions doing yoga stretches last evening.

My stress level has dropped from 10 to sub-zero, so I’ve arranged a strolling tour of the trendy Jean-Talon Market in Little Italy, two blocks from the Jean-Talon metro station and touted as the largest outdoor market in North America. I plan to walk, taste and talk, so I met with guide Ronald Poiré from the tour company, Visites de Montreal.

He will talk you non-stop through the stalls of vegetables, plants and flowers, inside adjoining shops with cheese, meats, spices, olives and, oh my, brisk-tasting rosé cider, Les Vergers de la Colline, made from Cortland, Honey Crisp and Dolgo apples, just $10.50 for a 750mL bottle. I also try the Baluchon Bio, an amazing organic Oka cheese, both at Le marché des saveurs du Québec, the go-to spot for delicacies made by local farmers and microbrewers.

Historical tidbits? The market was established in 1940 and grew in the 1950s when immigration boomed after the Second World War and Portuguese, Greek and Jewish families came, bringing with them the European custom of going to market to buy food.

“The problem is not the cooking, but finding all the right ingredients,” Poiré says of the buy-local food movement that’s helped promote the area’s restaurants and upscale cooking studios, such as Dante (6851 St-Dominique St.) and the new La Guilde Culinaire (6381 Boul Saint-Laurent) gentrifying Little Italy along Boulevard Saint-Laurent.

Poiré calls the stroll-friendly streets, lined with walk-up duplexes, wrought-iron staircases and hanging laundry, "the real Montreal", created before cars and bungalows. “Montreal is a walking city, a neighbourhood city,” he says.

Eating and sightseeing now checked off, the last step toward unwinding is a little retail therapy. Shopping at the department store Simons (977 Sainte-Catherine St. W.) is always a fashion fix, where most everything is on sale for $39.99 if you avoid the second-tier boutique racks. Visitors and downtown office workers flock to rue Sainte-Catherine, but walk either Saint Denis or Saint Laurent, for some of the best funky, flirty shops in the city. Revenge (3852 Saint-Denis) is a long-time destination for fabulous Quebecois designs.

For a sweet finish before leaving Montreal, there are patisseries everywhere, but chocoholics should try Suite 88 Chocolatier (3957 Saint-Denis) with gorgeous truffles, chocolate-coated ginger and orange, and biscotti fondue -- nutty petite biscotti that you dip in a bowl of dark or milk chocolate. Dip and swirl these tidbits on the patio for some lazy afternoon people-watching in what's become the hippest strip in the Plateau Mont-Royal.

Now breathe in and exhale, and head back to the rush. I’ll always have Novak and chocolate-dipped biscotti.

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